I got my start online providing graphic and web design to other work at home moms.  After venturing into the arena of information products and membership sites I stopped offering services to others for quite awhile, it just wasn’t a good use of my time at the prices I was charging at the time. (You’d totally laugh if I told you what I charged to design an ecommerce site back then.)

There has always been a few design projects for friends on the side but for many years I kept my focus on my own projects.

About four years ago that changed.  I decided to go ahead and put up a design site and offer services to a local market.  It just seemed to make sense.  Small business owners in my neck of the woods are so challenged when it comes to creating an online presence and it comes so easy for me.

It’s turned into a pretty amazing venture.  We have quite the corral of steady clients, some with massive online projects that we manage.  I’ve had to hire help and will likely be adding another part time staffer soon. This is all really exciting!

But in the midst of this success comes an issue of priorities.

With so much success and new referrals coming in all the time, it would be easy to let the design company completely eclipse my own internet business and that is not what I would ever want to happen.

Earning a great income by providing services you enjoy is certainly a dream come to for most people and I am really having a great time with it.  But trading hours for dollars, even when you’re getting paid well, has its limits.  Yes, I continue to grow my team and profit from theirhours but honestly, I don’t wish to end up managing a large team of employees. It’s just not my thing.

On the other hand, my internet marketing business, with the membership sites and information products has no limits.  So long as I continue to build new resources and market them appropriately, it can grow and grow.

It would be a strategic error to give the service based business too much of my time and attention.

Why do I do it at all?  Well, I do love it.  I make a fine income from it which has been key in providing me with cash to develop other new passive income streams. I think that I’m living profitable proof that you can manage a mixed business model with the right approach.  I would not suggest it for everyone though.

There are several good reasons that I have been able to make this work.

1.  I have help! I have a great Virtual Assistant who has been working with me for over four years now.  She keeps my internet marketing business in line with great customer services so I never have to worry about that.  I also have that local employee who takes a big load off for me.

It’s important to point out that I have taken the time out to train my VA and a local employee.  This is huge – so many people pack their schedule so tight they never have time to teach someone else to help.

2. My main business is mature. I’ve been podcasting for six and a half years.  My membership site, Mom Masterminds just turned six.  I’ve have about 25 information products and have been coaching one on one and in groups for over five years.  I have solid traffic and a great list.   If I had tried to balance these businesses from the beginning I would have ended up looking like a clumsy juggler.  By focusing 100% of my energies on my main business I was able to grow it to stability before turning some of my attentions elsewhere.

I created a learning resource, The Power of a Focused Business during those early years.  I share how being focused helped me be profitable!  Maybe I should now follow it up with “The Power of a Prioritized Business?” LOL!

3. I barter! I am blessed with great opportunities to barter my coaching and resources for additional services that my business needs to thrive. Think about leveraging the resources that you’ve created!  You don’t have to ‘sell’ to everyone if you can gain some value through a swap, go for it.

4. I defend my calendar. I’m militant about keeping space open on my calendar.  My VA takes care of scheduling all of my podcast interviews and coaching clients but if I see my days getting dangerously full I’ll go in and chunk out two and three hour time slots and identify their purpose whether it’s for my own projects or a clients.  My VA also knows that I’m not worth a hill of beans before 10am or in the late afternoon so she never schedules me for an appointment during those times.

5. I’m choosy about clients. I don’t take on every client who comes my way. That goes for both my business coaching and my design company. I only work with someone I want to work with, plain and simple.  I have to like their project and enjoy interacting with them.  I’ve gotten pretty good at identifying needy or fussy clients, something I highly encourage you to do as well!

Finally, I am my most important client. When the rubber hits the road, my own projects have to come first.  I refuse to give the best of me to someone else.  Certainly, what my clients do get is still pretty darn good but make no mistake, I favor my own business in every situation.  Clients come and clients go, you must not burn yourself out on other people’s projects while your own dreams languish.

If you manage your priorities well and keep a portion of yourself for your own long term projects, you’ll reach a point in your business life where you’ll be able to make choices about how you spend your time without guilt or fear.  Isn’t that what we all want? (Say yes!)

A long term view.

At some point in the future, I may decide to retire from the design business and I could totally do it.  I could sell the company to someone else and walk away.  Maybe I will, maybe I won’t – but I’m building it with that idea in mind.  That means I’m being careful to not make it too much about me.

Optimally, I’ll build my passive income up to such a level that any trading of hours for dollars is just silly.  Wouldn’t that be terrific?

P.S.  Want to learn more about creating a consultant business providing services to local businesses?  I’ve created a whole training program for it!

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